Total pages in book: 87
Estimated words: 83612 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 418(@200wpm)___ 334(@250wpm)___ 279(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 83612 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 418(@200wpm)___ 334(@250wpm)___ 279(@300wpm)
“Is that what you want, Mandy?” Lifting my free hand, I place my index finger beneath her chin and lift so that I can see those pretty green eyes. “You want me to follow you home?”
She swallows hard. “Yes,” she whispers.
“Okay.” Unable to resist the temptation, I press my lips to her forehead. That’s platonic-ish, right? I’m not breaking any rules. “I’ll walk you to your car.” With my hand nestled on the small of her back, as if it belongs there, I guide her to the parking lot to her SUV. “I’ll follow you,” I tell her as she unlocks the door, and I pull it open for her.
She looks up at me, and I know what she’s about to say, and fuck me, but I don’t want her to say it. “I want to,” I assure her. “Neither one of us wants to go home to empty houses just yet. A movie is exactly what we need.”
She nods, and I’m rewarded with a shy smile. “Drive safe,” she says softly.
It’s been a long damn time, too long in fact, since someone other than my daughter has cared enough to say those words to me. I know that’s on me. I don’t let people close, but Amanda, she’s different. This is different, and even more dangerous, but it’s a movie.
What’s the worst that could happen?
She buckles her belt, and I lean down so that we’re eye to eye. “I’ll be right behind you.”
She nods, and I have this sudden urge to press my lips to hers, but I know I can’t. Instead, I stand to my full height, close her door, and stalk off toward my truck.
Once I’m inside, I start the engine and close my eyes, my hands gripping the steering wheel as if my life depends on it. I know I should call her and tell her something came up, but deep down, I don’t want to. Just because I should, I just—I can’t do it.
Tonight, and that’s it. That’s all that I’m allowing myself. One movie, then I’ll go home and get my shit together.
I can’t have Amanda Holton, no matter how bad I want her.
“I’m going to go change,” Amanda says as I follow her into her condo. She reaches down to pick up the remote and hands it to me. “Pick us something,” she says, before turning and rushing up the stairs.
I’m not gonna lie, I watch her ass sway until I can’t see her any longer. Reaching down, I adjust myself because, of course, my body reacts to her. She’s fucking gorgeous. I take a seat on the couch and grab a pillow to place over my lap like a damn teenager and start scrolling through our options. Honestly, I don’t care what we watch. I’m just happy to have more time with her.
Since this is it—this is the last time I let myself indulge like this, unless it’s at the request of her or my daughter—who am I to say no to that? I can hide the fact that I think about her more than I should.
A few minutes later, Amanda comes back downstairs. “Do you want a glass of wine or something else to drink?”
I turn to glance at her over my shoulder. She’s in a pair of flannel pajama pants and a T-shirt. Her hair is pulled up on top of her head, and her makeup is gone. She doesn’t need it anyway, because she still takes my breath away. I swallow back the thought before answering her. “No wine, I’m driving, but water would be good.”
She nods, disappears into the kitchen, and I force myself to turn back around and stare at the screen in front of me.
“Here you go.” She hands me a bottle of water before sitting next to me on the couch, with her glass of wine. She pulls the cover off the back and places it over her lap. “What did you decide on?”
“I didn’t,” I say, handing her the remote. “I don’t watch much TV outside of game tape or past games or the sports channels.” I chuckle. “Pick whatever, and I’ll be good with it.” Twisting the top off my bottle of water, I take a small sip, just to have something to do with my hands.
“This is a new series the girls at work have been talking about. Well, not new, but a new season. Love is Blind. I guess these people talk through walls and get engaged without ever seeing the person.”
“Really?” I ask her.
“Yep. They’re trying to see if love is blind, meaning you can fall in love without seeing them, but then they have to live together and stuff.”
“Huh.”
Amanda laughs so hard her body shakes, and I reach out to steady her hand so she doesn’t spill her wine. “Not impressed?” she asks, once she gets her laughter under control.